American 700 series is tough.

[south town ninja]

Tryin to pick open an American 700 series padlock and am having a hard time, presumably because of the tiny keyway, amongst other things. I know it has a serrated pin (i hear all american locks do?). Do I need to trim down some of my picks for the smaller keyway? also, I hear that they have crazy springs in them that make picking hard.

[deolslyfox]

American 700's use the same cores as the 5200 series. They have a VERY tough actuactator spring. If you want to learn the lock w/o fighting the spring, pick it with the lock open first. Once you master the cylinder (no pun intended), then lock it up and learn to deal with the spring tension.

[south town ninja]

So i took the lock cylinder out and managed to pick it twice over the course of about six hours. I figure it was luck both times. I noticed that there are serrations on the key pins, and i hear there is at least one serrated driver. could anyone clear this up for me? also, I'm thin kin g about trimming the amount of pin stacks down, to help me tame this lock. However, i fear that if i take it apart i won't be able to get it back together again. I know how to take locks apart and put them back together again, but i heard that the springs in this one are more springy, and i know the plug size is smaller. anyone know where i can get a makeshift plug follower for this lock?